The Letter
by stacia.dreier
Summary: Takes place directly after the King's Cup. Jasper has left a letter with Liam as his goodbye to Eleanor. After reading the letter, will she choose to follow her heart or her mind?
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own the royals or any of its content or characters.

Author's Note: This is my first fanfic. I have read a lot and finally decided to give it a try. I am open to CONSTUCTIVE FEEDBACK. I hope you enjoy!

….

All the way back to the palace, they were silent. No one knew what to say at a moment like this. Did they all just have a hand in killing Ted? In one way or another he was a mentor to all of them. James finally broke the silence by telling them they would be arriving in five minutes. When they got to the palace, they would promptly be put on lockdown. He informed them that Liam had made it back safely and was waiting in his room to speak with Jasper. It wasn't the same as last time, they didn't have to stay in the bunker but the royal family and all staff were restricted to the east wing for the next 24 hours. Inside the palace, Jasper quickly escaped to find Liam while James escorted Eleanor to her room.

"Is there anything you need Princess?"

"I'd prefer to spend some time alone for now Mr. Hill. Thank you for everything today." She said.

He could see tears forming in her eyes. "Are you sure there's nothing I can get you?"

"No, thank you James. I'm rather exhausted. I think I'm going to take a nap."

"Alright then. You did good today Princess. I'm proud of you. If you need anything at all, I will be right outside."

Eleanor laid down in bed and quickly drifted off to sleep. A few hours later, she was being shaken awake by her twin brother.

"Len! Len…it's just a nightmare. You're okay. I'm here."

She opened her eyes and blinked back a few tears before she was able to speak.

"Liam! You're alive….I dreamt that Ted killed you in the car. I was at your funeral. Don't you ever leave me. I need you Liam! You're all I have left."

"That's not true Lenny. A lot of people care about you. Mom loves you very much. She's trying to make things right. And you know it's not completely her fault she's been awful all these years. And Jasper-"

"I told him to leave, Liam. I'm sorry. I know you trust him and he's done a lot to help us, but I just can't see him anymore. It's too hard. It hurts too much."

"I know Len. He stopped by to say goodbye. He cares a lot but he doesn't want to hurt you anymore. He's just very glad that he got to be there to help us find justice for Dad."

"So he's gone already then?" she breathed, looking out the window.

"Yea. James called the police to escort him home." Liam told her.

Without a word, Eleanor crossed the room to her closet and changed into her pajamas. When she came back out, Liam walked over and hugged her.

"I know it has been a rough year for you Len, for all of us. And know that I will always be here no matter what. But I think it's important that you find someone outside the family to rely on as well. It'll be good for you."

He reached into the inside pocket of his jacket and held out an envelope.

"What's this?" she whispered.

"From Jasper. Read it Len. I think you'll want to hear what he has to say….eventually it's going to matter to you."

She couldn't bring herself to take the envelope from her brother so he just sat in on her table.

"I'll leave you alone. I love you Lenny." He said before walking out.

She sat on the edge of her bed with her knees pulled up to her chest, staring at the letter. She knew that he had earned the chance to explain himself but she wasn't sure she was ready to hear it. She finally decided it would have to wait until tomorrow. After her nightmare, she decided to take a sleeping pill and she quickly drifted off to sleep.

The next morning, she awoke to her mother bringing her breakfast.

"Hello darling! I wanted to check on you after the day we all had yesterday."

She rolled over, rubbing the light out of her eyes.

"I'm fine, Mom. But thanks for the breakfast…that's uncharacteristically motherly of you." She said.

"Well, get yourself cleaned up. We are officially off lockdown in four hours, but you'll be needed in the throne room in an hour for a telecast."

Eleanor glared at her mother while picking at her breakfast.

"Not to worry, dear. I will be doing all the speaking. But it is important that the people see we are all alive and well right now."

An hour later, Eleanor met her mom and Liam in the throne room for the telecast. She sat in a daze as her mother spoke about what their family has been through in the last year and asked for privacy as they continue to grieve.

"…that being said, Price Liam and Princess Eleanor are to have their paternity retested directly following this newscast." Queen Helena said.

 _Wait? What did she just say?_ Eleanor thought.

After the camera man called cut, she turned to her brother to ask what was going on. It was evident to him that her mind was somewhere else.

"Cyrus falsified our paternity test results. Our blood was never tested. We're getting retested to see if Dad is really our father." He reiterated to her.

The twins were taken into a separate room to get their blood drawn. They were told that their results would be back in a couple of days.

Like clockwork, two days later, Eleanor and Liam were called back to the throne room for another telecast. They and their mother received the results on live TV.

 _Why does mother insist on doing this to us?_ Eleanor thought. _This should be a private family moment. Do we really want the whole world to see our reactions to these results?_

….

He sat in his small flat glued to the TV. It was the only way Jasper got to see the princess now. As promised, he was packing up to leave. He wasn't sure where he was going to go yet but he would figure it out in time. Jasper had done everything Eleanor asked of him since the night of her birthday party. He wanted to finally be honorable to her so when she asked him to leave, he couldn't fight her on it. He knew she deserved better than anything he could give her, so as hard as it was, he walked away.

"Today we are coming live to you from the palace. We are with Her Majesty the Queen, as well as Prince Liam and Princess Eleanor to bring you the results of their paternity test." The anchor asked them a few questions before he finally got down to business. "It is with absolute certainty that I can tell you His Royal Highness Prince Liam and Her Royal Highness Princess Eleanor are in fact the direct descendants of His Majesty the late King Simon."

Jasper watches as Eleanor and Liam break down in tears hugging each other. What he wouldn't give to be there to celebrate with them. Liam had become like a brother to him, certainly the closest friend he had ever had. And his feelings for Eleanor were clearly not going away any time soon.

….

After many hugs and a lot of crying, Eleanor excused herself to her room to freshen up. All of the crying had done a number on her, so she decided to de-stress with a bubble bath. As she crossed her room to her bathroom, the blue envelope caught her eye. She walked over to her table and picked it up without a second thought. She stared at it as she walked to the bathroom. She drew her bath and lit some candles. She needed a relaxing hour before she met with Liam to celebrate the good news. She slowly lowered herself into the bath and them opened the letter and began to read to herself.

 _Dear Eleanor,_

 _I know that I have hurt you a lot and I don't blame you at all for asking me to leave. I can only imagine how hard it must be for you to face me every day after what I did to you. I want to honor your wishes by leaving. I just want you to know that I am truly sorry for everything I have put you through._

 _My plan was simple, get a job at the palace, schmooze the princess, steal the diamond. I came to steal from you guys because I thought you didn't deserve it. I thought you were just some party girl bitch and that Liam was a dumb womanizer. I came to know you both along the way and I can say I have never been more wrong. I never expected like any of you, let alone fall in love._

 _When I escorted you on your charity tour, I realized what a big heart you really have. It was then that I realized I couldn't follow through with the plan. It may not mean anything now, but I stopped replying to Samantha then. She came to London because I went silent. She was going to make sure the con took place, even if she had to do it herself. I'm so sorry that we both hurt you so much. You never deserved that._

 _You are the most caring and compassionate person I have ever met and I feel so lucky to have known you. If I never see you again, I will find comfort in the memories I have of you. Just know that if you ever change your mind or need anything at all, I will be there for you. I need you to know that you can count on me. I would give up everything for a second chance to show you that you can trust me. Not many things have ever mattered to me as much as you and Liam. I care deeply about you both and wish you all the best._

 _Sincerely,_

 _Jasper_

After reading the letter, Eleanor called Liam to tell him she wouldn't be able to go out tonight. She told him that she had finally read Jasper's letter and she needed to sort through a few things first. Liam, of course, understood. He saw the way Jasper looked at her and knew how much he cared for his sister. He knew that they were good for each other and if given the chance, Jasper would make Eleanor happier than he'd never seen her.

After hanging up with Liam, she wasted no time texting Jasper. She wasn't ready to let him back into the palace yet, but she knew she couldn't lose him from her life either.

" **I got your letter.**

 **I'm sorry it took**

 **so long to respond.**

 **I wasn't ready to**

 **read it until today."**

" _It's okay. I really_

 _didn't know if I would_

 _hear from you at all._

 _I certainly don't deserve_

 _the light of day from_

 _you but I couldn't_

 _imagine the thought_

 _of losing you."_

" **I have come to realize**

 **I don't want to lose you**

 **from my life either."**

" **If it's ok with you, I**

 **would like to try**

 **being friends for now."**

She sent two texts without a response from him. She was starting to get antsy. Finally he text back.

" _Friends?"_

" **Friends….some people**

 **have them. They generally**

 **share common interests**

 **and do things together…"**

" **Sorry….habit. Is that ok**

 **with you?"**

" _I can do friends. I would_

 _do anything to have you in_

 _my life Eleanor. Friends is_

 _much easier than the_

 _alternative of not having_

 _you at all."_

She smiled to herself. He really did care for her. Even though she already knew based on his letter, it was comforting to know he wasn't willing to lose her yet either. She sat her phone on her bed and headed to the kitchen for a snack. When she returned with pie she saw that she had another text from Jasper.

 _"You looked beautiful on_

 _TV today."_

 **"Don't do that..."**

 _"What?"_

 **"Be all sweet like that.**

 **It's not fair."**

 _"You said we could be_

 _friends."_

 **"Friends...and you're**

 **walking a thin line."**

 _"I know I have done_

 _nothing to make you_

 _trust me but I am trying._

 _I really am. What do I_

 _need to do? I will do_

 _anything"_

 **"I know. I know that**

 **you're trying."**

" **But it's going to take**

 **time. I know nothing**

 **about you. We're strangers. "**

 _"You want to know me?_

 _I'm not sure telling you the_

 _sordid details of my_

 _depressing childhood is_

 _going to help me to win_

 _your friendship."_

" _But I do want you_

 _to know me so I_

 _guess it's as good_

 _a time as any."_

Jasper stared at the text window for a couple minutes waiting for a reply before hitting the dial button. Eleanor picked up after only two rings.

"Are we really doing this right now?" she asked him.

"You're right Eleanor. We are strangers. I want you to know me. I want you to know where I come from." He sighed.

"Okay…."she breathed, "I'm listening."

 _'What have I gotten myself into?'_ he thought as he searched for the right words. Eventually he decided to start with birth; it would be easier to work toward the bad stuff. He told her how when he was born, they lived in a big house right on Lake Tahoe. His father was heir to a hotel empire and he and his mother were high school sweethearts. His mom was a nurse and while his parents were often gone and he and his siblings were raised by a nanny, life was good for them. He spent every holiday at his grandparents' house surrounded by his cousins. They were the All-American family, white picket fence and everything. It wasn't until his grandfather died when he was four that their life began to fall apart.

When his father took over the company, his mom decided not to go back to work. She became a stay at home mom to three children; Jasper, his 9 year old brother Alex, and his 2 year old sister Maddie.

"My mom, Leanne, she'd never been home with all of us alone that much before. She had a hard time after Maddie was born, adjusting to taking care of all of us. I remember a few times that she would stay in bed all day. Maddie would be crying in her crib and we'd be complaining about being hungry. She would just yell at Alex to make us peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. We lived on those things all summer."

As soon as she could, she put Jasper in school. He was always smart for his age so he loved being there. It was an escape from his neglectful mother that he barely knew. One day his aunt came to pick him up from school. She took him and Alex home and they stayed there for about a week before they knew what was going on. Finally, they met with a woman named Amy. She told them that their mommy was very sick and they would be living with their Aunt Hannah and Uncle Todd for a while.

"Finally it hit me, and I asked where Maddie was. They took us to see her in the hospital and she was hooked up to all kinds of machines and tubes...it didn't make sense. That night, I overheard my aunt telling Alex that there had been an accident. My mom had filled up the bath tub. Maddie loved bath time so she was eager to get in. I guess, when my mom left the room to answer the phone, Maddie climbed in. About ten minutes later, my mom walked back in to give Maddie her bath and found her face down in the water not breathing."

He told her how his mom called 911 and then tried to kill herself. When the paramedics arrived for his sister, they found his mother unresponsive in the kitchen. She had tried to overdose on her antidepressants. Because of the lack of oxygen, Maddie had a lot of brain damage. It was unlikely she would ever live a normal life. When his mother left to answer the phone that day, she found out that her husband had been arrested for connection to a ponzi scheme at his company. Hannah and Todd were given sole custody of Jasper and his siblings.

When he was 8, Jasper's father was released from prison for good behavior and he and his siblings began visiting their parents again. It seemed as though they're family was on the mend, and then six months later, his aunt and uncle were killed in a car accident. All three children went back to live with their parents in Vegas, but the damage had already been done. Life was much different then. No big house, no nice cars. They lived in a small two bedroom apartment and barely scraped by. His mom knew it was her fault for the way Maddie was and she compensated for her guilt with copious amounts of alcohol and drugs.

As it turned out, his father was in deep with a lot of bad people. This is when the conning began. His parents used his sister's disabilities as a way of getting money out of people. Jasper and his brother were expected to help bring home money so they would wander the strip conning, pick-pocketing and begging for money from unsuspecting tourists. If they didn't come home with enough, they were beat by their father or sent to bed without dinner. There were times when their parents would go out of town for weeks at a time. Alex was pretty much a parent to Jasper and Maddie.

When Jasper was 13, Maddie died of complications due to her brain damage. With no reason to be home, his parents often left him and Alex to fend for themselves. Alex tried to take care of Jasper, but he wasn't mature enough to handle it. Within five months, he was removed from the home. Alex was 18 by this time so he moved out on his own, but Jasper was placed in foster care. He was in seven different homes by the time he was 18. No one knew how to deal with his anger and resentment. He'd lost and been abandoned by so many people in his life, he believed that he was destined to be a loner forever. Somehow, he managed to graduate high school and went to a community college. He studied criminal justice for a couple years while he worked security at the casinos. That's when he met Samantha.

"And the rest is history...so to speak. I have seen my parents here and there since I was put in foster care but we have no kind of relationship at all anymore. I haven't even spoken to them in the last 4 years."

Eleanor sat in silence, not sure what to say. She had tears in her eyes. _Why does life have to be this way?_ She thought. _Why do so many people have to suffer?_


	2. Chapter 2

Thanks for the reviews! They really helped me to continue this story. I have a lot of ideas and I'm trying to figure out how to piece most of them together into one story. This chapter is quite a bit shorter than the last one but I didn't really have anywhere else to go and I wanted it to end smoothly.

….

Eleanor may be used to an elegant comfortable lifestyle, but that didn't mean she was exempt from feeling pain. She has dealt with a lot of pain in her own life, things not even Liam knew about, but nothing stirs her emotions more than realizing the pain of others.

She took a few deep breaths to disguise the hurt she felt for him. "I'm so sorry, Jasper," she finally breathed. She knew that it wouldn't take away his pain, but she didn't know what else to say.

"It's not your fault," he said sternly. "I didn't tell you that story so you would feel bad for me. I don't want you to pity me, Eleanor, and I don't want you to think that this is an excuse for the things I have put you through. I just wanted you to know. I've never shared that with anyone before. But I trust you. I just want to give you the opportunity to really trust me, and you can't do that without knowing my story."

"Thank you," she whispered. "I know that I didn't make things easy for you Jasper. I'm sure by now you've heard that most people consider the position as my security detail to be a temporary position…." She trailed off, trying to refocus her point. "When I went into high school, it became a game to me, getting them fired….seeing who could deal with my shit the longest, seeing just how far I could push them before they ran off on their own accord. I'm not saying that it's okay, what you did to me, blackmailing me for sex, but I know why you did it. I conned _you_ into sleeping with me and then threatened to have you fired. That's pretty fucked up."

"That's not-"

She cut him off "I…I want to forgive you. I really do. But…..I feel I should be honest with you because I know you're hoping for something more than friendship eventually…and I just don't know if I will ever be able to completely let go of our past. It's true that I feel a very strong attraction to you but we've done nothing but hurt each other. It's not healthy. And besides…..I'm damaged goods Jasper. You don't know the half of it. I may only be the _Princess_ of England, but you know just as well as I do, that I'm the bloody _Queen_ of self-destruction."

"That's not exactly true," Jasper argued.

"If it weren't," she sighed choosing her words carefully, "you would have been gone a long time ago. A healthy, level headed person never would have let a stranger black mail her for sex." Jasper felt a pang of guilt at her words. "You were right though. I liked it. I thrive on being controlled because my whole life has been controlled. I don't really know how to be my own person. But I want to change that. James has been helping me to remove all the toxic things from my life." She hesitated before continuing because she knew what she was about to say was going to cut Jasper pretty deep. "One of those things….it's you Jasper. I can't effectively move forward with you in my life. The things I let you do to me, were not okay. I want to be strong enough to stop people from taking advantage of me. I have to start by letting go of those who have."

Jasper was at a loss for words. He could feel tears welling up in his eyes. Just when he thought they might work things out, she's pretty much telling him that he's a toxic thorn in her side and she wants to remove him from her life…..again.

"I'm…so…sorry…" he managed to choke out.

Again she cut him off, "I told you I don't want to lose you from my life, Jasper. I won't cut you out, because as far as I can see, you are a different person. I'm letting go of the old, toxic Jasper because I know you have as well. After the year I've had, I want to move forward with my life. I want to be happy and healthy. I deserve that chance."

"Eleanor, all I want is to see you happy. I would do anything you ask me to if it would make you happy."

"Well," she sighed, "coincidentally there is something you can do….and you kinda already agreed to it. Liam thinks I need a friend, and I don't disagree. I need someone to be there for me, someone I can talk to when I can't talk to my family. Show me I can trust you Jasper. And promise me you'll be there when I need you."

"I will. I promise I will go to the ends of the Earth to prove you can trust me."

"Okay..." she smiled into the phone.

"Okay," he repeated her. "It's getting late. I should probably turn in. Thank you for giving me another chance. You won't regret this."

"Alright. We'll be in touch. And by the way, if you need anything from me, I'm hear as well. Goodnight Jasper."

"Goodnight princess." He hung up the phone "I love you."

Eleanor laid back on her bed. She had just had a real conversation with Jasper for the first time. She had known very little about him before tonight. She wasn't in the business of getting to know the help. That humanized them and that was not something she was willing to do….until James became her security detail. He gave her space and helped her grow. He was a good man. She hadn't trusted a body guard as much as James, not since….well since she was fourteen.

Flashback:

 _It was the summer before she went into high school. At the time, Gemma was her best friend. Their families had been friends long before her and Liam ever dated. They were a lot alike in those days, Eleanor and Gemma. They shared many interests and both loved pestering her brothers._

 _They had been out riding for a couple hours before they eventually retired to the kitchen for a snack…Eleanor's favorite, coconut cream pie. The two of them sat opposite each other at the counter, discussing their next prank against her brothers when Will walked in. He had been Eleanor's night body guard for about six months at the time and often helped her and Gemma pull off their pranks. She considered him a friend, even though he was six years older than her._

' _Will is kind of cute, don't you think?' Gemma said, eyeing him like a piece of meat._

 _It took Eleanor off guard. She had never looked at him that way. 'I suppose he's alright, but he's twenty years old Gemma, you freak!'_

 _He sauntered over and pulled up a seat by the girls. Gemma raised her eyebrows at Eleanor and began flirting with Will. She really just enjoyed making the help uncomfortable. Eleanor noticed that Will didn't seem the slightest bit uncomfortable as he flirted back with the thirteen year old girl. That was the first time he had done anything to make her feel uneasy._

 _Suddenly Will always seemed to be around the two girls, casually flirting with Gemma and even sometimes the Princess herself. Eleanor was glad school had started back up and they were often too busy with her studies for Will to hang around much. Gemma came over almost every Saturday though. On this particular one, they were running through the halls celebrating. They just pulled off a pretty bold prank against Liam. They rounded the corner toward her bedroom and found Will pacing outside her door. As he turned around and saw the girls, Eleanor was sure she caught a dangerous glint in his gray eyes and her heart started racing._

' _Where have you been?!' he demanded._

' _We were in Liam's room. We had to get him back for the bucket of water on my door last week….' she trailed off furrowing her brow at him. She wondered what had crawled up his ass._

' _It is my job to know where you are at all times. Your constant sneaking around is getting a little old don't you think Princess?" he accused. The way he hissed the last word made her stomach churn._

 _In all reality she hadn't been sneaking around at all, she was just avoiding him because he seemed to be getting a little too comfortable around her and her friend. But she wasn't about to say anything to Ted. Will let her do as she pleased most of the time and wasn't one to tattle on her. Her last body guard had been bloody impossible to deal with. She would deal with a little bit of flirting, if it meant she had more freedom._

 _After dinner, Gemma went home and Eleanor retired to her room. She worked on homework for a couple hours before she decided to call it a night around 10pm. She was dead to the world when she was suddenly awoken three hours later to a hand covering her mouth. She opened her eyes and all she could see were his dark gray eyes staring right through her. She didn't try to scream because she knew it would be no use. Will was the only one that guarded her corridor, no one would hear her even if he didn't have her mouth covered. Instead she tried wriggling free, but his weight was crushing her. Tears started spilling out of her eyes, she knew what was happening and she could do nothing to stop it._

 _She didn't sleep a wink the rest of the night. She had taken six showers by dawn, each time scrubbing her whole body until her skin was raw. She felt disgusting. She waited until after 8 to leave her room, because she knew Andrew would be taking over as her day time body guard. She threw on a large red sweatshirt over her pajamas and went straight to Ted's quarters._

' _What can I do for you Princess? I'm on a tight schedule.' Ted pressed._

' _I want Will replaced. He's not body guard material.'_

' _It was my understanding that you two got along famously. What could have sparked this change in opinion?' Ted asked._

' _Look, Mr. Price…I am the Princess. What I say goes. Shall I call my father to get involved in this or are you okay to take care of it on your own?' she demanded._

 _Ted was taken aback. Eleanor had never spoke to him like this before. She was generally very polite and well-mannered with all the staff. She was one of his favorite members of the family because of it._

' _I will see that the issue is resolved right away your highness. But unless you give me a legitimate reason, Eleanor, Mr. Olson will be acceptable for rehire in the future.'_

' _If you must know, Ted, I caught him snooping through my room. He wouldn't tell me what he was looking for, and when I asked him to leave, he called me a bitch. I don't think it's wise to speak to a Princess that way. Do you?' She said as she walked out of the room._

 _Will was the first body guard she had fired. He was the reason she didn't like to humanize the help. He was the initial reason for her trust issues. And he had been what set her down the path of self-destruction. He was supposed to be there to protect her, to keep her from being taken advantage of. And he took her innocence, without her permission. What was the use of having a body guard if they couldn't protect her? For months all she could see was his stony gray eyes in every other body guard she had. No one lasted more than a couple weeks. She made excuse after excuse to get them fired, and everyone just blamed it on her free spirit._

 _She had never told anyone. She shut all her friends out. She shut her parents out. She relied only on her brothers because she knew she needed someone, but she still couldn't bear the thought of telling them what Will had done to her, what he took from her._

 _She felt dirty, broken…unworthy. She was sure no one would ever love her now…she was damaged goods. She was often so stressed that she couldn't eat or chose not to because she felt hideous. Hiding her secret became so unbearable that she turned to drinking at fifteen. When she became numb to alcohol by 18, she started doing drugs. At first it was just the occasional joint, but eventually she became numb to that as well. Before she knew it, she was doing all kinds of drugs. She barely remembered what it felt like to be sober._

The pain of the memory stung at the corners of her eyes. She allowed a single tear to fall before she rolled over hugging her pillow. She closed her eyes and willed herself to think of happy thoughts. She thought about Prince Rufus, the puppy she tried to steal during the charity tour last year. In his letter, Jasper had said it was then that he realized what a big heart she had and he couldn't follow through with the con. She sat up and pulled the letter out of the drawer of her nightstand. She knew she couldn't call him again. He'd gone to bed after they got off the phone an hour ago. Instead, she reread the letter twice before drifting off to sleep.


End file.
